Rigs in the Eagle Ford – and beyond

Here's an aerial view of an Eagle Ford Shale drilling rig - and new pad sites clustered nearby - near Kenedy in November 2012. (Photo by William Luther, Express-News)

Where are they drilling for oil and gas across the country?

As of March 1, there were 841 drilling rigs operating in Texas, 187 in Oklahoma, 175 in North Dakota, 104 in Louisiana, 77 in New Mexico, 74 in Pennsylvania, 55 in Colorado, 45 in Wyoming, 34 in California, 28 in Utah and 22 in West Virginia, according to the latest Baker Hughes Rig Count. (There are rigs operating elsewhere, but those states had the biggest numbers).

Texas has about 48 percent of all U.S. rigs, and more than one-fifth of the rigs operating worldwide.

The Texas breakdown shows 408 rigs in the Permian Basin in West Texas, 228 in the Eagle Ford in South Texas, 45 in the Panhandle’s Granite Wash and 22 in the Haynesville Shale in East Texas.